Discussion Topic

So here is my TR as promised! As a forward I'd like to say that aid climbing is the shizzle! We did a grade 5 in PTPP style. Enjoy. Hopefully the video links work if not I'll put em up again tomorrow.

Our plan Beer, Whiskey, and Wet Denim Day Dream....My First wall with and first time climbing with Mucci - another dirtbag. I met Mucci in the parking lot in TM over beers we hatched a plan to do a wall. 1-2 months later we jumped on the Leaning Tower.

Racking up at the parking lot...Wow that's a lot of gear - I may like this aid thing. Were gonna need to have a few beers before the load humpin begins.

Myself, Bones our mascot, the pig, and the beer bucket. Unfortunately I didn't have time to repaint the beer bucket so I added some tape. Some of you have prolly seen its companion the UN helmet.

Two taco goers say us on the approach and wanted to snap a shot. It turns out that one of them was Studly and he emailed me this pic. Thanks Brah!

We started out the day with beers and humped in the first load. We then returned to the deli, drank more and humped in the last load. Apple juice containers work really well for Jack and Coke.

Bones hanging out at the base of the climb.

This is looking out from the start of the West Face (same first 4 pitches as Wet Denim). What you see is the Leaning Tower Traverse. A super fun slightly loose PG protected route I did earlier this year - Wahooo 2 trips up the tower this year, one free and one aid!

Mucci cruising up the P1 Bolt ladder. Dude is FAST on ladders. I had so much fun swinging off the bolts. Mucci was kind enough only to clip every 4th or 5th bolt for me to give me a fun ride.

Bones dug it too!

Styling for a photo on P3 or 4 I think.

Bones feeling a little scared. Note the quality duct tape job on him.

Awahnee ledge means beer time. We met Kevin (not me another one) who was soloing Jesus Built My Hot Rod. Unfortunately a large chunk of the route fell off and Kevin was bailing (he'd take a couple of 20-30 footers earlier) and hooked us up with his left over water. Anyhow he had done Wet Denim a few months ago and he felt it was pretty stout. So after a few beers we figured the West Face might be a better idea for my first wall.
My first night on a wall was here and was full value with the good old morning poop tube.

Me leading out on P5.

Super fun P5 traverse.

Mucci cleaning P5.

Me following P6.

It's getting close to beer time.

Cobras at the bivy. My first night in a ledge which was borrowed from drc. He still hasn't used the homemade ledge he bought this year. Hope it doesn't rain on him when he does and hopefully he'll shrink to 5'6" cause the ledge is a kinda small.
Thanks for the ledge dude - it's got the kev seal of approval now!

It's beer thirty!!!!!

Mucci chillin out on his giant A5 ledge. Lucky Bastard!

Mmmmm, morning smoke. I had kinda quit smoking but took a sabbatical from my non-smoking ways for the tower.

Good job Chef! Makes me glad I stick to training new troops instead of jumping on big walls. Thinking about going to Quartz for the Fall Gathering. You have inspired me to get busy and get out there. Kevin, you have a quality climber in the Chef there, listen to him and you will be a hard man in a hurry!

You don't even know me. My trash???? Has it ever occurred to you that other people climb that rock, both before us and after us? Hmmm the bivy is shared by how many people? Anyhow perhaps you should think before you speak - on that one. I pick up way to much of other peoples sh#t and it's rather annoying to hear this kinda crap from someone who doesn't know me....I guess I get faulted because I didn't scour the climb for other peoples sh#t????

That said I can't argue with you about bones. Yes we left him there for Halloween, maybe we'll put Rudolph up there around xmas....

kev

Oh yeah and on the butts, well unless the pack or two of butts in my pocket at the top was a hallucination nope not mine

Mike,
I know kevs faults and they are many;)
Wantonly littering however is not one of them. I have seen him dump pocketfulls of his own and others cig butts out in the trash after coming down off climbs.
A pile of 'bones' at the base or on the ledge is kinda funny IMO.
Way funnier than the piles of unburied sh#t and TP at the base of many a popular climb.
cheers
V.

I'm with Mike, leavin Bones on the route is ghey. Funny isnt what comes to mind when it comes down to packing out someone elses bulky and awkward trash. The Tower is the second most popular wall in the valley and is summited nearly everyday. Imagine if every party left their novelty item on the route and tore apart the summit bush for a campfire? Think impact and leave the holiday toys at home. Plus wasn't your climb in September? Little early for holloween dontcha think?

Now if you had climbed Nightmare on California Street, bones might have been fitting. Not trying to be a hater, I'm glad for your sucessful first wall, and I hope you climb many more. Just get over the n00by toy fetish and leave the route cleaner then you found it!

Holy coronary, kev, relax. Glad to know you're the sort who picks up everybody's trash out there. Odd, though, that a person like that would leave the other trash. I think your idea to leave a fun prop (or however you'd like to describe Bones) on the wall was lame. Maybe climbers like finding stuff like that, I don't know. I'm speaking for at least a few I know who would rather people not leave crap like that around.

Hehe, yea it was a funny sight trucking body parts into the parking lot. We had a story about our poor third guy all queued up.

The bones thing is a liget debate. The idea came from the giant plastic spider that was in a crack over on the open books this year or last. I'll ponder this a bit.

Sorry if I got a little pissed. And I do understand being mad about trash - I've hauled out plenty of other peoples crap as well. I took offense to the suggestion that I left a bunch of crap there (again other than bones)....Anyhow I think we're square on it all now.

Thanks for righting the record on that, kev. And for your apology, tho we all get worked up now and again. You're [undoubtedly] like me in that you take it sort of personally when people trash your favorite climbing spots. No offense at all intended or taken. Cheers...

At first glance, it seems inconsistent that if you climb harder than most you're entitled to leave inflatable sheep and other toys and its cool, and if you're new to the walls it's not. But then when thinking about it in terms of traffic and impact, the pack-it-in-pack-it-out maxim is a good one.